


The New World Needed Room For Me And You

by Latte_Hottay



Category: Hatchetfield Universe - Team StarKid
Genre: Angst, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Infected Paul Matthews, Songfic, Torture, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:42:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28533117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Latte_Hottay/pseuds/Latte_Hottay
Summary: PEIP is trying to develop a cure. They use Paul & Emma as their test subjects.
Relationships: Paul Matthews/Emma Perkins
Kudos: 25





	The New World Needed Room For Me And You

**Author's Note:**

> I'm suddenly really into writing songfics even though I used to hate them lol :) (tbh I also don't really like reading them they're just fun to write)
> 
> Me? Taking the saying "Imma steal your kneecaps" way too literally?? More likely than you'd think
> 
> Me: PEIP is evil now.  
> Also me: Not McNamara though I like him
> 
> Song is Our Love Is God from Heathers :)
> 
> TRIGGER WARNINGS:  
> -(Experimental) Torture  
> -Surgery without anesthesia  
> -Needles  
> -Injuries

“PAUL, NO!” Emma screamed as the infected version of the man she missed so much closed in on her and he grabbed her arm, helping, no, forcing her to stand up.   
  
“Join the party, Emma,” Paul said, smiling so the blue stains on his teeth were visible. “You’ll be hap-”   
  
A loud  _ BANG _ sounded through the room. Paul looked down at the small dart that had pierced through the skin of his arm. He slowly pulled it out. “Dammit…” he mumbled, letting Emma go before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he crumpled onto the floor.   
  
“What the fuck was that?!” Emma shouted when she saw colonel Schaffer stand in the doorway.   
  
“Sorry, Kelly. I’ll explain later. Come with me,” she calmly said, reaching for Emma’s arm.   
  
“Fuck no! I want an explanation first.”   
  
“Sorry, Kelly, I can’t do that.”   
  
“Well, then I’m not-” Emma raised her hands as the colonel raised her tranquilizer again. “I’m sorry, I’ll-”   
  
Emma flinched as the dart hit her neck. The look of betrayal on her face didn’t fade, even as she slipped into unconsciousness.

*** *** ***

Emma woke up about an hour later and immediately started fighting against the men who were strapping her wrists to a medical table.   
  
Something was covering her mouth and nose, like an oxygen mask, and she slowly took in her surroundings. It looked like she was still in the hospital. Had it been a dream? A hallucination? Was Paul still alive? Or was she just so high on pain medication that she couldn’t tell what was real anymore?   
  
The men took a step backward when they finished restraining her. Her wrists, ankles, hips, and chest were all secured in place by bulky leather straps.   
  
“What’s happening?” Emma asked, her words still slurring from the tranquilizer. The mask became foggy as she spoke   
  
“Ah, Kelly. I see you’re awake,” colonel Schaffer spoke up, finally walking into Emma’s sight. “As you know, your hometown has been infected by a deadly musical virus. If we want to find a cure, we will have to monitor the differences between humans and the ones infected by this virus.”   
  
“And you’re saying?”   
  
“What I’m saying is that PEIP is a secret branch of the military, and we can’t just ask for existing data without exposing our work. We need a text subject.”   
  
“No! Fuck that! There has to be a law against this or something!”   
  
The colonel laughed, starting to close straps below and above her knee. “This is the only way for humanity to survive. We’ll start with the basics; a few different DNA tests to see if we can detect any anomalies in the DNA we gathered from our infected subject. After that, we unfortunately have to do some more complicated tests. We’re going to gather some bone from the both of you.” Emma’s eyes widened. “The easiest way to do that without having to amputate a limb would be to remove your kneecap. We’ll monitor your brain activity while we do this. Our theory is that the infected can’t feel pain, so we’re taking the opportunity to test that. Afterward, we’ll closely monitor the healing process of both of you.”   
  
“What, no! You can’t do this!”   
  
“We can.”   
  
“You’re not even going to put me under?!”   
  
“Like I said, we have to monitor how much pain you’re in.”   
  
Emma tugged at the restraints as she heard the colonel walk towards the door. She didn’t think she’d want the answer to her next question, but she had to know. “Who’s the infected test subject?”   
  
“I think you know.” The colonel winked at her, and left the room before she could say anything else.   
  
“Hello, Kelly,” one of the doctors said. “We’re just going to attach a few electrodes to your scalp and then we’ll start the procedure. I have to ask you to stay as still and relaxed as possible, okay?”   
  
“Fuck you!” Emma shouted, flinching as the man touched her head.   
  
He took a step back when he finished, grabbing some tweezers. “We’ll take some hair, skin, and blood samples before we start,” he said, pulling a hair from her head as he talked. Emma winced at the feeling. She pulled her hand away as far as the restraints allowed when he started scraping some skin off the back of her hand, but he grabbed it and continued as Emma struggled in a desperate attempt to free herself.   
  
When the man approached with a syringe, Emma started to scream. She tugged at the restraints as he came closer. “Get away from me!”   
  
The doctor smiled. “This won’t be as bad as what we’re doing next, just try to relax.”   
  
His voice was soothing, but his words made her tense up. They were actually going to take her kneecap, weren’t they? She watched as the man took her blood, but she didn’t fight.   
  
Another doctor walked towards her and attached a heart monitor to Emma’s finger. “Keep it on,” she said. “Don’t try to take it off.”   
  
“Here’s what’s going to happen,” the first doctor spoke. “We’ll make an incision next to your knee and then we’ll carefully stitch it back up. Try to stay calm.”   
  
Emma laid her head down, closing her eyes as she felt gloved hands touch her leg. She clenched her fist as she felt the scalpel cut through the skin. She gasped at the feeling of the cold air on the wrong side of her skin as the flesh was peeled back. A drilling sound started and within seconds she could feel the vibrations through her entire leg. Her head was the only body part she could move, so it rolled from side to side as the bone was slowly removed. The oxygen mask shifted and she could feel someone putting in back in place, holding her head tightly sho she couldn’t move.   
  
She could hear someone talking, but barely registered it over the pain of string being pulled through her flesh. Ragged breathing turned into hyperventilating, and all she wanted was to go home. She didn’t even realize they were done until she felt the electrodes and heart monitor being removed.   
  
There was a needle, and her breathing slowly evened out as the pain faded away.

*** *** ***

Emma’s eyes shot open, and she looked into blue eyes. She scrambled away as soon as she realized who they belonged to.   
  
_ Paul. _   
  
“Woah, Em, I’m not gonna hurt you,” he told her, raising his hand in a gesture of peace.   
  
“Get away from me! You’re one of them!”   
  
“I’m not going to hurt you,” he said calmly, like a stranger approaching a lost child. “I can’t hurt you.”   
  
“What are you doing here?” Emma asked, her voice shaking with fear.   
  
“The same as you.” He lifted up his pant leg and pointed at a blue scar just below his knee. It looked like it was fully healed, and there were no stitches. “I can’t hurt you. They’re watching us, and if I do anything they kill me and the rest of us.”   
  
Emma nodded slowly. She lay down on the bed in the cell and gestured for Paul to sit down next to her. “What did they do to you?”   
  
“I guess the same as they did to you,” he said, looking at the bandage around her knee, just below the other bandages from the crash. “Can I see?”   
  
“I guess…” Emma mumbled, wincing at the touch of his cold fingers as he started unwrapping the bandages.   
  
Paul gently prodded at the stitches, causing Emma to pull away, gasping in pain as she bent her knee.   
  
“Sorry. Does it hurt?”   
  
“Of course it fucking hurts! They cut through my bones!”   
  
Paul nodded, starting to wrap her leg back up. They were both silent until Emma spoke again when he was done. “Did it hurt when they… you know…”   
  
Paul shrugged. “A little. We don’t get hurt like humans do. We can feel pain, but our bodies heal immediately. I can hear the others in my head, they spoke to me when it happened, helping me through it.”   
  
Emma nodded. “I’m exhausted…”   
  
Paul smiled. “Okay. Goodnight, Emma.”   
  
Emma crawled under the scratchy blanket. “Goodnight, Paul.”   
  
It took her a while to fall asleep, and when she finally did, it didn’t take long for her to wake up from a nightmare. But Paul was there to make her feel safe; he didn’t need sleep. He watched her trash in her sleep and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder to wake her up. When her eyes shot open, he gave her a warm smile, taking her hand.   
  
“Nightmare?” he asked softly.   
  
“Yeah…” Emma responded, looking around her. “My leg hurts.”   
  
“You were moving a lot.”   
  
She nodded. “It was scary.” He didn’t pry, and she rested her head on his lap.   
  
They stayed like this the entire night, neither of them saying a word.

*** *** ***

When it was finally morning, Emma jumped at the sound of a knock on the door. “Breakfast!” colonel Schaffer announced, before they heard the click of the lock.   
  
Two plates of mashed potatoes were placed on the desk in the corner of the room. The colonel walked away, but Paul stopped her. “Colonel!” She immediately reached for her gun. “No, no… I just wanted to ask if you have any painkillers for Emma. Her leg is bothering her.”   
  
Both Emma and the colonel were shocked at his words. “I’ll see what I can do,” she said, leaving the room and locking the door.   
  
“You really didn’t have to do that,” Emma said when she was gone. “I can deal with it.”   
  
“You’re hurt,” Paul said. “We can’t feel pain, and it would go away if you joined us, but I can’t do that, so this is how I help you.”   
  
Emma nodded, smiling at him. “Thanks, dude.”

*** *** ***

Colonel Schaffer entered the room about ten minutes later, handed Paul a paper bag, and left without saying a word.  
  
Paul opened the bag and took out a syringe. “This will help you.”  
  
“Geez, don’t you have some pills or something?” Emma asked, moving away from him.  
  
“What’s wrong?”  
  
“I’m just scared!”  
  
“Emma, it’ll help.”  
  
“I’m not letting you near me with anything sharp!” she shouted, backing up against the wall.  
  
Paul sighed, uncapping the syringe. “You haven’t slept at all. I’m just keeping you alive.”  
  
“Some painkillers aren’t going to keep me alive!”  
  
“Maybe, but it’ll definitely make your life more bearable. Just look away, okay?”  
  
Emma’s eyes were fixed on the tip of the needle as he took a step closer. He gently cupped her cheek and slowly turned her head so the needle was out of her sight. The pain in her knee was barely bearable and she knew the painkillers would help, but she still fought against his grip on her arm.  
  
Paul made sure she couldn’t see it when he poked the needle into her skin. Her terrified cries turned into sobs as he put the syringe back in the bag and carefully pulled her onto his lap, stroking her hair.  
  
“ **They made you cry,** ” he started to sing as Emma took in his scent. “ **But that will end tonight. You’re the only thing that’s right about this broken world.** ” She tensed at the sound of the notes, but soon relaxed when she noticed he didn’t intend to hurt her.  
  
“ **Go on and cry, but when the morning comes, we'll burn it down and then we'll build the world again,** ” he continued, holding her tightly but making sure she didn’t feel trapped. “ **Our love is God.** ”  
  
Emma hummed contently, resting her head against his chest and closing her eyes.  
  
“ **I was alone, I was a frozen lake. But then you melted me awake.** ” A bright blue tear fell onto the bed. He chuckled softly. “ **See, now I'm crying too.** ”  
  
“ **You're not alone, and when the morning comes, we'll burn away that tear, and raise our city here.** ” He smiled as he noticed Emma had fallen asleep. “ **Our love is God.** ”

*** *** ***

Emma woke up to fighting outside of their cell. “You’ve experimented on  _ civilians _ ?!”   
  
“Yes, general, we had to develop a cure. That’s the only reason we could save you.”   
  
“Cure the infected and let them go. Now.”   
  
“Yes sir.”   
  
The door opened and Emma sat up. Paul got up as soon as she wasn’t lying on top of him anymore.   
  
“General McNamara,” Paul said. “Hello, sir.”   
  
“Hey, son. I’m here to save ya.”   
  
Paul nodded slowly. “I’m happy now. But I want to be with Emma.” He turned to Emma, smiling. “ **We can start and finish wars, we're what killed the dinosaurs. We're the asteroid that's overdue. The dinosaurs choked on the dust, they died because God said they must.** ” He took her hand in his. “ **The new world needed room for me and you.** ”   
  
Emma smiled at him, tears stinging in her eyes. Once he’s human, will he forget about this? Or will they continue right where they left off?   
  
Paul cupped her cheek. “ **I worship you. I'd trade my life for yours. They all will disappear, we'll plant our garden here.** ”   
  
He stood up, walking towards the general. “ **Our love is God.** ”   
  
General McNamara grabbed his arms, cuffing them together. “ **Our love is God.** ”   
  
He didn’t fight as he was led towards the door. “ **Our love is God.** ”   
  
He looked at Emma one last time before the door closed.   
  
“Our love is God…” Emma mumbled as she waited for the general to come back and take her away from here.


End file.
